I decided to update early since I'm leaving for the sea-side tomorrow. I'll be back next Saturday so chapter 22 will be up on Sunday as usual.

For Blaze de Dragon:

Renji/Yoruichi sounds very interesting – I'm honored you keep my story in such high regard and I'm more honored you actually want my help. I'll be happy to help you – just e-mail me or leave a signed review, so I'll know how to contact you. I'll surely answer you when I come back home.

Author's note: reference to facts described in chapter 20.

This chapter is dedicated to my history teacher – see, prof.? I do know World War I! One week ago

XXII: FAIR TRADE

One week ago

Renji didn't know that gigais could sweat – apparently, Urahara's could.

He cursed the stupid perfectionist and immediately realized that, maybe, breaking his hard-earned concentration over such trivial things hadn't been such a smart move, after all.

'Goddamn it! I already graduated once, why do I have to go through this whole school thing all over again!'

Unfortunately, his frustration didn't change the reality: Abarai Renji was failing his History class, therefore he was forced to undertake an oral test.

Now, there he was, sitting next to teacher's desk with two other students and desperately trying to remember which other lands had been contended between two countries after then the thrice-be-damned Alsace and Lorene.

As if that wasn't bad enough, five or six students had gathered by the other side of the desk to listen to their oral test and take notes on the questions – and Tatsuki was among them.

Renji shifted nervously on his chair. 'Damn! I know where they are, I know who wanted them, I know how they where split after the war – but I can't remember those fucking names! What the Hell, they were too damn strange! How can he expect me to remember that!'

"We are waiting, Abarai." the teacher said.

"Well…Italy questioned the Austrian ownership over some neighboring areas, which were…uhm, well…"

On the other side of the desk, Tatsuki cleared her throat.

Renji's eyes immediately shot up. 'Is she laughing at me?'

Their eyes met – then, to his utter amazement, Tatsuki started carefully mouthing the four words he had been searching in vain.

"They were Trentino, Friuli, Istria and Dalmatia." he says, firing all the words in one single breath.

'Now I hope he won't request a perfect pronunciation!'

"Very good, Abarai. Now, Sasaki, could you tell me…"

Renji let out a sigh of relief and slightly slumped in his seat. His gaze landed on Tatsuki's smiling face. She winked at him and he tentatively smiled back.

He took a deep breath and looked at the clock. 'Only 10 minutes to go… Then we have Japanese and then the Trigonometry test.'

Two hours later…

Renji put down his pen and stretched a bit.

He glanced at the clock – still fifteen minutes left and nothing to do. He had already checked his answers twice, but everything seemed fine.

Feeling boredom slowly creep up to him, he started looking around to see how the others where doing. Inoue was spacing out again, Rukia was finishing her rough draft and soon would start copying all the exercises, Ichigo and Ishida had both finished and Sado, well – it was pretty hard to tell.

The red-head's gaze then landed on Tatsuki – and he almost gasped.

The black-haired girl was biting down on her lips and looked overall worried and frustrated. The lower half of her sheet was a mess – numbers written one above the other and then crossed out, erasures, calculation only half-done.

From what he could see, she was having troubles with the last equation.

Renji didn't stop to think about it. He simply tore a piece of paper, wrote the equation down and hid it inside a clean tissue.

Then, while the teacher was looking the other way, he swiftly threw it on her desk.

Tatsuki blinked, glanced at him, then unfolded the tissue and found the note. She cast him another quick look, then started copying down the right answer.

She finished a minute before the bell rang.

The students handed back their tests, then started walking out for lunch break. As Renji gathered his things, a shadow fell across his desk.

"Abarai?"

"Yes?" he replied as he stood up – noticing without much interest that they were alone in the class.

"I think you have something that belongs to me." Tatsuki crossed her arms to her chest. "Since I was so kind to save your sorry ass with History, I demand it back as a repayment."

Renji smirked. "Straight to the point as usual, aren't you, honey? So, you want your bra back?"

She punched him on the arm. "Why don't you say it louder, they didn't hear in New York City!" she growled, even if Renji, for once, wasn't shouting.

The red-head smirked. "Sorry, honey, but I think I'll keep it."

Tatsuki flushed. "WHAT! WHY! I helped you out and you owe me!"

"I already paid my debt. I passed the last equation, didn't I?"

"I DIDN'T ASK YOU TO!"

"It doesn't matter. Plus, I want to take home a souvenir from Earth."he winked at her.

For a second or two, Tatsuki was way too stunned to reply. "Couldn't you buy a damn T-shirt!"

Renji leaned across the desk until they were eye-to-eye – quite literally, too. "But that it's special." he whispered. "It's yours…"

Tatsuki blushed crimson and gaped. Renji only chuckled as he walked away.

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